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An independent record label is variously described as a record label operating without the funding (or outside the organizations) of the major record labels, and/or a label that subscribes to indie philosophies such as DIY and anti-corporate art. The boundaries between major and independent labels (and the definitions of each) differ from commentator to commentator in practice. Some independent record labels, in particular those with successful performing artists, sign dual-release agreements (and make other deals) with major labels, and some independent labels rely to some extent on international licensing deals, distribution agreements, and other arrangements with major record labels. Major labels may also wholly acquire independent labels. A record label is a brand created by companies that specialize in producing, manufacturing, distributing and promoting audio and sometimes video recordings (especially music videos), on various formats including compact discs, LPs, DVD-Audio, SACDs, and cassettes. ...
The world music market is dominated by the big four major record labels. ...
In popular music, indie music (from independent) is any of a number of genres, scenes, subcultures and stylistic and cultural attributes, characterised by (real or perceived) independence from commercial pop music and mainstream culture and an autonomous, do-it-yourself (DIY) approach. ...
DIY stands for do it yourself, as opposed to paying a professional to do it for you. ...
A corporation (usually known in the United Kingdom and Ireland as a company) is a legal entity (distinct from a natural person) that often has similar rights in law to those of a Civil law systems may refer to corporations as moral persons; they may also go by the name...
A musician is a person who plays or composes music. ...
Other nominally "independent" labels are started (and sometimes run) by major label artists but are still owned at least in part by the major label parent. Examples of this include Madonna's Maverick Records, Death Row Records and many others. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
Maverick Records is a record label which was founded by Madonna, Freddie DeMann, Ronnie Dashev and Warner Bros. ...
Death Row Records Logo. ...
Independent labels have existed for almost as long as there has been a market for recorded music. Even as the music industry has become more centralised, independent labels have continued to be a significant, if small, part of the overall market. In a number of cases, independent labels have assembled rosters of recording artists that rival those of the majors. The 1960s and 1980s are regarded as having been particularly fruitful periods for independent labels. Independent labels are no longer simply business entities but since the early 1980s (and exploding in the 1990s) have formed the core of the cultural indie music "scene".
Starting with the widespread piracy lawsuits of the early-2000s, non-membership in the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) (and its foreign counterparts) is increasingly seen as a prerequisite for a label to be truly independent, although this view is not universal. Some music consumers have begun to actively boycott RIAA member labels by purchasing only music from independent artists. Given the number of RIAA labels, this can be difficult unless one checks a database such as Downhill Battle's RIAA Radar. In the UK, all of the independent record labels are jointly represented by the Association of Independent Music. Copyright infringement (also known as piracy) is the unauthorized use of copyrighted material in a manner that violates one of the copyright owners exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works that build upon it. ...
The RIAA Logo. ...
Downhill Battle is a non-profit organization based in Worcester, MA. It launched in August 2003 and argues that the four major recording labels have a monopoly that is bad for both musicians and music culture. ...
The Association of Independent Music (commonly known as AIM) is a non-profit trade body established in 1998 by UK independent record labels to represent the independent record sector, which constitutes approximately 25% of the UK market. ...
See also
The following is a partial list of record labels, both past and present. ...
This article or section contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ...
Open source record labels are a reaction against what some musicians see as corporate control of music via means of copyright. ...
DIY stands for do it yourself, as opposed to paying a professional to do it for you. ...
Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ...
Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music often used to refer to bands that are on small independent record labels or that arent on labels at all. ...
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